This invention relates to devices for cooking food. In particular, this device relates to a contact roaster.
When cooking a large food item such as a chicken, duck, or pot roast, a cook must turn to a high capacity cooking device. In the past, high capacity cooking devices including, as examples, roaster ovens, slow cookers, and oven broilers have attempted to meet this need. Each, however, has its drawbacks.
For example, a conventional oven broiler is fixed in place, unwieldy to operate, and difficult to clean. Slow cookers are often portable, but typically heat food unevenly, particularly when they incorporate a glass cover. Prior roaster ovens typically provided heating elements limited in number and position, while requiring a complex mechanical assembly for rotating food past the heat elements. The heat elements were often exposed, leading to inadequate heat intensity for cooking the food item and failing to seal in juices. Instead, the food dried out significantly during cooling. Furthermore, grease drainage can be inadequate and messy, often leaving the food item to cook in its own grease.
A need has long existed in the industry for a roaster that addresses the problems noted above and others previously experienced.